Joan Durocher New Interim Head of NCD

WAHINGTON, DC-- Joan M. Durocher is the new interim Executive Director of the National Council on Disability. She will serve through September 11, 2010 or until NCD appoints a permanent Executive Director is appointed.

NCD is a federal agency charged with making recommendations to the President and Congress to enhance the quality of life for all Americans with disabilities and their families.

Joan Durocher has served NCD for over eight years, most recently as a Senior Attorney Advisor. She has managed NCD products with wide-ranging impact, such as “Foreign Policy and Disability: Legislative Strategies and Civil Rights Protections to Ensure Inclusion of People with Disabilities” and “Finding the Gaps: A Comparative Analysis of Disability Laws in the United States to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities”.

For a more detailed description of Ms. Durocher’s accomplishment and qualifications, please visit: http://www.ncd.gov/ or contact NCD's Director of Public Affairs, Mark S. Quigley, at mailto:mquigley@ncd.gov_ or 202-272-2004.

SOURCE: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/national-council-on-disability-announces-executive-director-interim-85829247.html

New Conditions Added to SSA Compassionate Allowance List

On February 11, the Social Security Administration announced an addition of 38 new conditions to its list of conditions for the Compassionate Allowance (CA) initiative, including early onset Alzheimer's.

The initiative makes it possible for SSA to expedite favorable disability decisions for people who apply for disability benefits based on documented diagnosis of listed disabling conditions. The initiative not only assists those whose applications are quickly processed, but also assists those whose applications need more time and attention from SSA adjudicators because staff time is freed up to address the applications which need more time.

For a copy of the press release and a list of the 38 new conditions, see:
http://www.ssa.gov/pressoffice/pr/cal021110-pr.html

Abuse Prevention Passes House Committee

Readers,

In a follow-up to yesterday's post, I'm sharing with you excerpts of the Congressional press release on the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4227). This news is great news!!

To see Chairman Miller’s opening statement on video, visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dADmiyJNU34

To read the most recent markup page with the roll call votes, visit: http://edlabor.house.gov/markups/2010/02/preventing-harmful-restraint-a.shtml

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House Education and Labor Committee today passed bipartisan legislation to make classrooms safer for students and school staff by preventing the misuse of restraint and seclusion. The Committee passed the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4227) by a vote of 34 to 10.

A U.S. Government Accountability Office report released last spring exposed hundreds of cases of schoolchildren being abused as a result of inappropriate uses of restraint and seclusion, often involving untrained staff. In some cases, children died. A disproportionate number of these victims were students with disabilities. In some of the cases GAO investigated, ropes, duct tape, chairs with straps and bungee cords were used to restrain or isolate young children.

“This bill makes clear that there is no place in our schools for abuse and torture,” saidU.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee. “The egregious abuse of a child should not be considered less criminal because it happens in a classroom -- it should be the opposite. I’m proud that this bill has bipartisan support and I hope the full House will vote on it soon.”...

... The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act will, for the first time, put in place minimum safety standards to prevent abusive restraint and seclusion in schools across the country, similar to protections already in place in medical and community based facilities. After two years, states will need to have their own policies in place to meet these minimum standards. It would apply to public schools, private schools and preschools receiving federal education support. Specifically the legislation would:

· Limit physical restraint and locked seclusion, allowing these interventions only when there is imminent danger of injury, and only when imposed by trained staff;

· Outlaw mechanical restraints, such as strapping kids to chairs, and prohibit restraints that restrict breathing;

· Require schools to notify parents after incidents when restraint or seclusion was used;

· Encourage states to provide support and training to better protect students and prevent the need for emergency behavioral interventions; and

· Increase transparency, oversight and enforcement tools to prevent future abuse.

The legislation embodies principles outlined by the Obama administration in December. It has the support of nearly 100 organizations, including the National School Boards Association, the National Education Association, and the American Federation of Teachers. See a full list of supporters here: http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2010/01/supporters-of-the-preventing-h.shtml.

(End Excerpt)

For more information, please visit:

http://edlabor.house.gov